It has begun...

Today marks the 1st day of training. I am following the Hal Higdon novice training program. I ran my first marathon back in 2007 and followed the same program. It can be found here:

http://www.halhigdon.com/marathon/novices.html

I went into my first marathon a tad bit under trained. I vow not to let that happen again.

It's hard having 3 kids and trying to find the balance. My husband is also training for the Maui Marathon so we are trying to alternate our schedules. Don't even get me started on the Florida heat....ARGH! My plan is to just get the mileage in--not to worry about my speed. I can comfortable run an 8 minute mile for runs under 5 miles. I'm going to run everything around a 10 minute mile to avoid any injury.

That's the game plan anyways...

Maui Marathon

It's official. We are going to Maui! I can hardly wait. The hubs and i just ran the Keys100 relay. Can we say BLAST! We had a great team and finished in 14 hours 50 minutes. We met some fabulous people!

A couple on our team is headed to Maui in September and it gave me the marathon itch. The one and ONLY marathon i did was brutal. 2007...undertrained...stress fractures...i swore i would never do one again. I jumped on the half marathon bandwagon and haven't looked back.

Until this past weekend. Now we have our flights and room. There is no looking back. Did i mention we live in FLORIDA and it's almost June? Yes, that means i'll be training in the dead of summer. CrAzY!!

It came today...

I received the package today from My Father's World. I ordered the deluxe package of Aventures in my Father's World with the Singapore Math, Primary Language Lessons and Spelling by Sound and Structure.

I must admit that i am quite impressed. I can hardly wait to jump into this. However, we will not be starting until the summer time.

I am so nervous about the logistics of the household and how i'm going to get everything done. This may sound shallow, but i'm concerned about going to the gym since this is a ritual in the mornings.

Math U See

I received it in the mail yesterday. YIPPIE! I still need to buy the manipulative starter blocks though. I pulled it out and let Alexis take a peek. She's excited about homeschooling, but i do not think she fully understands what it entails.

I only have the baby home today and i'm wondering can i really do this? It's nice just having him and I. My house is going to be upside down 24/7 homeschooling. How on earth am i going to get the laundry done, go to the gym, cook dinner and run errands? I'm sure it will all work itself out, but i'd be telling a lie if i said i wasn't scared to death.

Thus is the reason we will be starting in June. :) So if the bottom falls out from under us, school will be there in August.

My sign from God

I've been praying about my decision to homeschool. I received my sign when my 6 year old came off the bus sobbing. She is my people pleaser. Somewhat shy and reserved. An older girl took her school bucks out of her backpack. We were able to get them back, but i took it as my sign from God.

So...i went and bought the curriculum to homeschool next year. I bought Adventures in My Father's World Deluxe Package with the Language Arts and Singapore Math. I have already purchased the Math U See Beta, but figured it would be nice to have both.

So the plan...is to start in the summer. This way i can get a feel on it with the kids home. I am sooo nervous about this decision. I am just not sure i can do it all. Heck, i have trouble doing it now, but it's sink or swim. :)

Wish me luck

Homeschooling

I am so on the fence on whether i should homeschool Alexis next year. She is doing well in public school, but my gut is telling me to pull her out. I just don't know what to do. I have so many doubts about myself. I figure it's only one year, but will i be able to handle it all. I currently have Alexis 6, Kaila 3, and Brayden is 1. Plus my 12 year old nephew is here for the next year.

I'm thinking we will give it a try on a year by year trial.

A Christmas Version of 1st Corinthians 13

If I decorate my house perfectly with plaid bows, strands of twinkling lights and shiny balls, but do not show love to my family, I'm just another decorator. If I slave away in the kitchen, baking dozens of Christmas cookies, preparing gourmet meals and arranging a beautifully adorned table at mealtime, but do not share the true meaning of Christmas, I'm just another cook. If I work at the soup kitchen, carol in the nursing home and give all that I have to charity, but do not demonstrate kindness to strangers, it profits me nothing. If I trim the spruce with shimmering angels and snowflakes, attend a myriad of holiday parties and sing in the choir but do not focus on Christ, I have missed the point. Love stops the cooking to hug the child. Love sets aside the decorating to kiss the husband. Love is kind, though harried and tired. Love doesn't envy another's home that has coordinated Christmas china and table linens. Love doesn't yell at the kids to get out of the way, but is thankful they are there to be in the way. Love doesn't give only to those who are able to give in return but rejoices in giving to those who can't. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, and endures all things. Love never fails. Video games will break, pearl necklaces will be lost, golf clubs will rust, but giving the gift of love will endure. "And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love."

Author Unknown